Risen

“Ow...Candy, you alright?” Twister asked as he pushed a couch off of him.

“Never. Felt. Better,” The earth pony grumbled as she looked around the dark room, groaning. “I can’t see a thing. Where are we?.”

“Hang on,” Twister said as he ignited his horn, providing light. The room, it turned out, was actually the underground railway system, with debris scattered throughout the tunnel. Looking above was a huge sinkhole from through which they had fallen. “How’d we survive that?”

Twister took in his surroundings, his magical glow falling on the black armored form that was now covered in rubble, its top half sticking out from the bottom of the wreckage. Both children screamed and the light on Twister’s horn gave out. He focused his magic again, and the light re-emerged. This time, Twister was further away but there was enough light for them to see. “Is it alive?” he asked.

Candy gulped before slowly walking up to it, placing an ear up against its head.

“I hear breathing…” Her eyes fell on the creature's wings and she touched them gently. “Oh. Oh my gosh, are those...wings!?” she exclaimed with amazement.

“Say what? Wings?” Twister trotted over to take a closer look. “You mean it can fly?”

Candy looked at the figure with amazement. “Gotta be a sky-walker! Unless you know anypony else that has wings. Besides a griffin of course?” Candy asked, to which Twister shrugged. “Still, it saved us, that makes it a hero in my book.”

“You mean like that ‘Paragon’ from the radio?” Twister asked.

Candy peered closer to the unconscious pegasus. “Actually, this looks a lot like a cyborg.” The little filly gave a gasp. “Like Dark Steel!”

Twister facehoofed. “Again with the pre-war comics,” he said, getting a closer look. “Anyway, what do you want to do with it?”

“Well, we can’t just leave it. That would be totally wrong and not heroic at all. Though all that rubble looks very heavy.” She took sight of the plasma rifle on the floor next to the prone pegasus, then a thought came to her and she looked around the area. “Where did we end up anyway?”

Twister caught sight of one of the metro maps on the wall. “Huh. Looks like we’re in the Drako Tunnel system. We shouldn’t be too far from the camp.” Twisters eyes went wide at a sudden realization. “Hey, where’s our saddle bags?”

“You lost our stuff?!” Candy asked. “Great, we’re going to be in so much trouble.”

Twister pointed at the filly. “Hey, don’t blame me, going outside was your idea.” He sighed. “Forget it, let's just head back. The others will be worried about us.”

The filly shook her head. “No way we’re leaving the sky-walker! He...she...it, saved us from that!” She pointed at the rubble that pinned their saviour.

“Look, you can’t move it, I can’t move it,” Twister exclaimed, as electricity danced around the entrance to the sinkhole, the eye of the storm just overhead, “and I’m sure that’s not going to wait for us to find a way either.”

Candy looked to Twister and then back to the pegasus. “I’m not leaving without it.” She focused her strength, struggling to move a huge chunk of rock, heedless of the thunder around them. “Now quit your whining and help me!”

Twister sighed in frustration and joined Candy in her fruitless attempt to free the prone sky-walker.

*****

The darkness plaguing him was starting to come into focus as Quickcase’s eyes adjusted to the light. Red filled his vision but thankfully it wasn’t blood, just the blaring red text:

SYSTEM REBOOT IN PROGRESS
SYSTEM POWER - 60%
HEALING CHARGES - 4/10 REMAINING
WEAPON HARNESS - DAMAGED
FLIGHT TALISMAN - ONLINE
REPAIR TALISMAN - ONLINE - INSUFFICIENT MATERIALS FOR REPAIR PROTOCOL
EFS - OFFLINE
RADIO - OFFLINE

He wondered where he was, but as soon as his eyes fell on the foals who were trying to free him, everything started coming back. As he lifted himself up, bits of rubble fell off his hindquarters along with groaning metal and he noticed the awestruck expressions on the two foals.

“Woohoo, we saved Dark Steel! We can be heroes!” Candy joyously shouted over the thunder, jumping up and down in joy.

Lightning struck the top of the rubble several times and appeared to be getting worse as the number of strikes increased.

“Yay, that’s great. Now, let’s get out of here!” Twister cried frantically as he used his magic to try and drag the still beaming Candy away, her hooves grinding against the floor.

*****

Quickcase felt winded. While the healing talisman had kept him alive, his body ached from the exertion and he finally allowed himself to slump to the floor. To make matters worse, his armor made it more difficult to move since parts of it were bent, jammed and poking him.

A compartment of his armor opened and out came a canteen of fresh water. When he removed his helmet for a drink, the first thing that hit him was the smell of the underground system. He had grown accustomed to the wide fresh air of the higher climates and was totally unprepared for mold, rust, and the myriad of other bad smells two hundred years could inflict on a location, especially underground. It took a minute for him to regain his composure, and when he did so, he came face to face with a very disappointed filly.

“Awwww,” Candy mumbled disappointedly, “Dark Steel can’t take off his helmet…you’re no cyborg at all...”

Twister just shook his head. “So much for your hero.”

The filly then beamed. “But you’re even better since you saved us! Plus, Dark Steel didn’t have wings, so that means our vigilante is even cooler! Like, twenty percent cooler!”

“I’m no vigilante,” Quickcase said as he stood. “I am a soldier of the Enclave, which means I help civilians and lost little foals.” He took a drink and offered it to the two foals. Twister looked hesitant, but Candy happily took it in her hooves, gulping every drop. “So, why are foals like you outside in a place like this?”

“We’re not foals! Anyway, I’m Cotten Candy, but people call me Candy for short. This is Sweet Wind, but he hates that name, so we call him Twister.”

“Hey! Don’t go telling strangers my name,” he said defensively.

“He’s no stranger. He’s the sky-walker!”

Quickcase looked back down the tunnel they ran from. “It’s Quickcase actually. I don’t suppose you two know of a way out?” He started to become apprehensive. “Places like these can be dangerous.”

“Dangerous? Pfftt, nah. Well, I mean sure they used to, but then the Paragon came in and blasted almost all the nasty ghouls and even took out a raider camp!”

Quickcase couldn’t believe what he’d just heard, but he figured if this Paragon can do something as impossible as that, then this, hero, must be very strong. “One pony cleared out the entire tunnel system?”

Candy looked a little guilty. “Well, maybe not the WHOLE thing, but enough so that ponies could start using them safely. Actually, there’s a settlement not far from here.”

“Candy!” Twister began sternly. “Don’t go telling him all our secrets. We still don’t know him.”

She turned to face the colt. “He’s coming with us. As the leader of this party, my decision has been made,” she said in a low firm tone, then turned back to Quickcase. “I mean, you do want to come with us, right?”

The pegasus began carefully weighing his options, and not at all because this filly was begging him. “I have ponies who are going to be worried about me…” he began, watching Candy’s smile start to disappear before continuing, “but, I would be remiss if I allowed two foals to wander alone. More importantly, if there are merchants nearby then, I’m in luck.” He brought his helmet into his forehooves. “ I might be able to get this fixed.”

Candy’s smile returned and she jumped up in joy. “Awesome!” She then looked to her coltfriend expecting approval.

Twister sighed. “Fine. We can take him. Suppose we do owe you for saving us, and I guess it would be pretty lame if you got killed by a Lightning Phoenix.” He held up a hoof before Quickcase could ask. “It’s the creature that’s making the storm above our heads. If you want to know more you’ll have to ask somepony else.”

Quickcase nodded, and Candy jumped up in joy again, which seemed to be a default movement that came with the filly. “Best day ever!”

*****
Quickcase was lead to what had once been a main terminal location for the metro system, where the trains would load and unload passengers from the platforms. Candy had gone into further detail that it had once been a den for feral ghouls, but after the Paragon cleared it, it became a suitable site for settlers. There were guard posts and turrets watching the west approach and the main entrance to the surface. The east tunnels had collapsed, and the south was still in the process of setting up defences since few ghouls apparently came from that direction. It was from this location that the party of three approached. Two guards watching the entrance aimed their weapons at the black armored figure before them.

“Hold it right there. State your business.” An older earth pony stallion called out while a younger leveled his weapon.

Candy blew a raspberry at them. “We ain't strangers ya goof balls! And this is a hero, did I forget to mention he’s a sky-walker?”

The guards looked at the filly with confusion, causing Twister to interject. “I can vouch for him. He saved us, and won’t cause any trouble.”

“Wait, the boss's kid? What are you and this...sky-walker, doing out so late? You know what, don’t answer.” The younger guard looked at the older stallion with surprise as they both lowered their weapons. The older guard looked at Quickcase. “Don’t go trying anything fancy, we got our eyes on you.”

Quickcase nodded. “I understand.”

Candy took the lead as she raced ahead, then stopped to face Quickcase. “Welcome to Metro Port!” she opened her hooves in an overly dramatic manner.

*****

As they walked through the station, Quickcase couldn’t help but be impressed with what he saw. Half a dozen ponies were disassembling a train car and using it to build makeshift housing, and others were setting up a light system powered by a non-exhaust generator. He could smell an improved air quality, and his ears picked up on the ventilation system. A few simple stalls for merchants had been set up, while towards the collapsed east side tunnel were pens for beasts of burden.

He had ended up falling behind the two foals as he took in the wastelanders’ ingenuity and resourcefulness. Seeing over two dozen ponies working to turn an abandoned train station into a settlement made him hopeful.

“Where have you two been?!” A stallion’s voice admonished, catching Quickcase’s attention.

The two foals had entered the mezzanine of the station, specifically where it looked like the security hub used to be. Quickcase made his way up the ramp to figure out what was going on. His escorts were inside an office and the door was wide open, letting every yell fly out for all to hear. The stallion was a unicorn, who had a dark brown coat and mane similar to Twister’s. The unicorn was sitting in a chair, looking down at the two foals with a scolding look.

“You know full well not to be out on your own!” The older stallion exclaimed, then directed his attention to the colt, “and Sweet Wind, I expect better from you!”

Twister shifted uncomfortably. “We were careful, the south of the city—”

“The south?!” The stallion interjected in surprise, “You know that area is dangerous, there’s a reason we avoid it! Between the sinkholes, bandits, you—”

“Come now dear,” a mare spoke with a gentle voice, another unicorn with a coat very similar to Twister’s own, “yes, they did leave without supervision, and they will be punished accordingly, but at least they made it back in one piece.” That seemed to stem the stallion’s worry, and he took deep breaths to calm himself. The mare then turned her attention to the foals. “Now, care to explain why your saddlebags are missing?”

Candy smiled with guilt, “Well, we did manage to find some supplies. That is, until my tail got stuck, then a building fell on us—”

“What?!” The stallion yelled, and even the mare raised an eye at the filly’s story.

“Yeah!” The filly continued with her enthusiasm. “A big piece of concrete fell on my tail, Twister tried to save me but couldn’t, and when all hope seemed lost, we were rescued by the most awesomest hero ever! Aaaand, get this, he’s a sky-salker!”

Quickcase sighed. “It’s Quickcase actually,” he spoke softly, as he walked up the ramp.

“He saved us and we helped him and now we’re friends!” Candy beamed.

The area fell silent for a moment as bystanders were starting to take note of the power armored figure and began to whisper to themselves. The mezzanine had bright lights so it was pretty hard to miss the black armored figure standing out in the open. Their staring didn't go unnoticed by him, so he kept ready for any potential threats. It seemed the opposite was the case as most were in shock and awe, a few were wary, but only one stood out from the rest.

Outside the window that overlooked everything, a pale white unicorn mare with a russet mane watched Quickcase with steady eyes, showing a cool control of her emotions. She wore a brown cowboy hat and a leather jacket. At her sides were holsters for two pistols that seemed of a heavier caliber than any other pistol these ponies had. What impressed Quickcase was that she wasn’t keeping her focus on him alone, but occasionally eyeing her surroundings for any troublemakers.

“Where are my manners? Come inside and we can speak further.” The old stallion’s voice brought Quickcase’s attention back to the present. Nodding, he was led into an office and closed the door behind him.

“Name’s Long Haul,” the stallion began, then gestured to the mare, “This is my wife, Harvest Trail, and you’ve already met my son, and our mascot Candy. I’m the temporary mayor of Metro Port. Sounds like I have you to thank for getting these two back home safely. I suppose you’d want something for your trouble?”

From the window Quickcase could see a train car that was being worked on. “If you’ve got any extra scrap metal, I’d be more than happy to take that off your hooves.”

All four ponies looked at him with a surprised look before Candy spoke. “Scrap metal? But that's practically worthless, unless…can you eat metal just like Dark Steel?”

Quickcase tried to respond, only for Harvest Trail to beat him to it. “No deary, that's silly. The armor eats the metal to fix itself.”

“Ooooooooh.” Candy nodded her head in understanding. Then she looked confused. “What?”

“It has a repair talisman similar to those Silver Knights,” Long Haul said as he looked over Quickcase’s armor carefully. The pegasus was surprised that they knew about such repair functions from power armor. “Never thought I’d see a pegasus variant. Then again, I never thought I’d actually see a pegasus with my own two eyes.”

Candy cocked her head. “Huh? Why not?”

Long Haul took a deep breath. “Well, you see—”

“I apologise for interrupting,” Quickcase began as he raised a hoof. “The storm above has cut me off from my allies, and I need help getting back to them. I don’t suppose you know of a guide to get me through the sewer system?”

Long Haul placed a hoof on his chin for a moment before getting out of the chair and walking to the window. Quickcase noticed that he had a bad limp on his rear left leg. “I know a few who might be able to help. Where were your friends heading?”

“The nearby Ministry of Magical Technology.” to Quickcase’s surprise, he instantly felt a change of mood as he mentioned that name and he found that everypony was giving him a worried look.

Long Haul let out a sigh. “You don’t wanna go there boy. Ponies that do rarely come back out.” Quickcase stood firm, unmoving in his choice, which must’ve worked since Long Haul lowered his head in defeat and pointed out the window to a caravan wagon. “Bronco there has been trying to get ponies to salvage the place. He’ll have more information on what you’ll be facing.”

Quickcase nodded in thanks before turning to leave.

“Wait,” Harvest Trail spoke up. “You saved my son, I can’t begin to tell you how grateful I am. We of the Happy Trails Caravan remember those who are kind to us. Do you need anything else?”

Quickcase looked at his messed up battle saddle. “Spare electronics would be ideal. If not, then perhaps something to protect myself?”

Harvest shook her head. “Sadly no, any electronic scraps we have are in use. But I think I may have something else.”

The unicorn used her magic to lift a well crafted 10mm pistol along with its holster and two boxes of ammo. Long Haul looked ready to voice a complaint, but a quick glance from his wife was enough for him to keep quiet.

“This here is Bitter Mercy. Nifty little weapon that’s got a special enhancement, one that allows it to punch through thick armor. It’s not much, but this should give you an edge.”

“Mom! I thought I was gonna get your awesome pistol!” Twister complained.

Harvest turned to face him. “Somepony wouldn't be alive if not for our friend here, now would he?”

Twister grumbled and muttered under his breath at this.

It may have been a primitive weapon, but beggars couldn’t be choosers. “I suppose it’ll have to do. Thank you,” Quickcase said, taking the weapon and sliding it into his foreleg holster. He had to admit he was quite missing his inventory management system at the moment.

He bid his hosts farewell and exited the office. Trotting down the ramp, he noticed the glimpses several of the bystanders were giving him, but most just went about their business. As he approached the stall where the caravan wagon was parked, he noticed the same unicorn mare with the cowboy hat, and by the way she was looking at him, she had something to say. His thoughts were confirmed when she stepped in front of him, blocking his path.

“Business?” she asked.

“I’m here about the job at the Ministry building.”

She looked him over before turning to the stall. “Hey Bronco, we got another prospect, this one should interest you.”

From behind the stall emerged a white earth pony with a blue and orange mane setting down a tray of…odd looking vegetables? The stallion’s emerald green eyes looked Quickcase over and he whistled.

“You’re right. This one does interest me.”

*****

Bronco’s laughter echoed through the station, catching the curiosity of a few onlookers.

“My friend, you are just the right type of lucky and crazy, with an honest heart to boot,” Bronco said as he patted the pegasus on the shoulder. “I’ve met a few ponies in my time that qualify, but you definitely take the cake.”

Quickcase had gathered as much scrap as he could. While waiting for the repairs to complete, he had recounted the events from landing on the surface to the arrival at Metro Port, at Bronco’s insistence. He was a little reluctant to begin with, but Bronco managed to bribe Quickcase with a tasty vegetable called a ‘steamed potato’, which he resolved to acquire a few samples of them before he went back to the Neigherside.

“I did what I had to. Seemed right at the time,” Quickcase stated as a badly bent monkey wrench was absorbed into his armor, along with a few other metals whose origins was unrecognizable. “Though, I should’ve gotten a better view of my surroundings before acting.”

Bronco chuckled. “Most wouldn’t risk their life the same way you did, let alone survive to tell the tale. Yet here you are.” He patted Quickcase again. “I’d say he’s just what we’ve been looking for, right Bolt?”

The unicorn mare had been quietly listening in on the story. “He seems better than the other prospects.” She looked him over quizzically.

“Others?” Quickcase asked as the last of the dents in his armor finally corrected themselves.

Bronco nodded. “Been looking for ponies to raid the Ministry hub for a while now. Unlike some, I’m picky about who I hire.” He gestured to the market. “Plenty want to tag along, but I’m not betting on the lives of inexperienced adventurers with delusions of grandeur.” He turned to Quickcase after placing down the tray of food. “I’d like to think I’m a good judge of character, and can generally tell when somepony has that special something. Take that Paragon mare, for instance. I met her when she’d barely crawled out of the underground—”

“Bronco, you’re rambling,” Bolt Action cut in.

He let out a small chuckle. “Ah, right. Sorry, bad habit of mine.”

“What’s your interest in the Ministry?” Quickcase asked as his armor verified that it was repaired, and he set the excess scrap aside.

“Glad you asked,” Bronco began, lowering his voice. “See, during the Great Calamity, the Ministries did all sorts of experiments. The branch of the Ministry within this city did experiments on magical radiation when they discovered the zebras got ahold of a weapon of mass destruction. Now, I have good information that suggests they had a device that can cleanse food of radiation and if the rumors are true, maybe even replicate it. I believe it was called a ‘Food Processor Prototype’. Can you imagine what ponies could do with food that they can simply copy at the push of a button? What I want are the schematics. Even better if you manage to find one that’s fully functional.”

Quickcase looked at the stallion skeptically. “Your food seems fine already. Why would you need it?”

Bronco smirked. “Fair question. A lot of farms manage to get things going, but their crops are usually tainted with magical radiation. The land my family owned was able to avoid the worst of the apocalypse thanks to its location, allowing the potato family—”

“Bronco,” Bolt interrupted sternly.

“Right.” He cleared his throat before continuing. “As I was saying, if the technology still exists, I know ponies that could reverse engineer and mass produce it. I may enjoy the profits of my labor, but nopony wants to die from the very thing they need to survive.”

Quickcase was quiet for a moment. Not only do these ponies know how to survive off of scrap metal, but they also show genuine emotion for others. Enclave reports always suggested that the wasteland natives were savage, but this is the complete opposite. “So I suppose you want somepony to find it for you?” Quickcase asked.

“Eeyup, and there’s a reward in it for you should you decide to take the job.”

Quickcase pondered for a bit. Right now the only thing on his mind should be getting back to his unit in one piece, but if this stallion’s story was true, then finding this device could further relations between the Wastelanders and the Pegasi. Not only that but the Enclave would be able to use said contraption to strengthen their food supply, if he could find and copy the blueprints. “I’ll see what I can do.”

Bronco clapped his hooves together. “Excellent.”

“One thing still bothers me though. Why not go and get it yourself?” Quickcase saw no harm in asking such a straightforward question. If this device is as important as Bronco says he could've easily had it by now.

Bronco chuckled nervously. “About that.” He seemed rather reluctant at first. “Ministries are known to have, decent protection, you can’t just walk right in and take what you want. It’d be suicide. Besides, I’m a farmer and occasional business pony, not a fighter.”

Quickcase involuntarily took a step forward, eyes widened. “Are you saying my friends could be in danger?” Initially he dismissed Long Haul’s warning as the words of a superstitious civilian, but now the pegasus was having second thoughts.

Bronco nodded. “Well, potentially.”

“Then I have little time to waste. How soon can the rest of the team assemble?” Quickcase asked, trying to stay calm, though the sense of urgency in his voice was apparent.

Bronco turned his gaze to Bolt Action standing nearby. Her eyes fell on the grinning stallion and she sighed. Getting up from her bench, she tipped back her cowboy hat and spat out the lollipop stick.

“Fine. But it’ll cost you extra,” she grumbled, as she walked past Quickcase and to a door that lead downstairs.

“Is that all?” Quickcase asked in disbelief.

Bronco chuckled. “Trust me, she’s all the backup you need.”

The pegasus was quiet for a moment before he reached out a hoof to Bronco who kindly took it into a hoof shake. “I guess I should thank you.”

“Hey, you’re the one who is going to be risking his life. I don’t envy you that.” When Quickcase turned to leave, Bronco interrupted him, whispering in his ear, “Oh, and one more thing. Watch each other’s backs in there. Last guy who went in said his friends disappeared without a trace, claimed that ghosts of the old war got them. While I wouldn’t put much stock in that, keep your eyes open all the same. There is a reason those ministries are generally avoided.”

Quickcase nodded. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

Ghosts of the old war? A superstition to be sure, but rumors and stories usually formed from some basis of truth. Quickcase could only hope that his friends his friends could handle themselves until he arrived.

*****

The tunnels were long and tedious, and the lack of light made it difficult to see where one was going. While the scrap metal had fixed the damage in the armor itself, the electronics within the helmet were still off-line, so he had resigned to leave it off while traveling, and had to make due without any of its useful functions such as the radio or night vision. Thankfully, Bolt Action knew of a spell that allowed her horn to illuminate a limited area. It was a neat trick, and Quickase wondered if all unicorns knew the same spell, but he hadn’t yet asked. It would be an odd (and probably offensive) way to start a conversation

In fact, the entire trek was getting downright awkward. Nopony had said a word since their departure from Metro Port, the echoes of hoof steps was the only thing that greeted their ears. He was used to the idea of stealth missions and keeping radio silence, but that was with known friends in ‘high risk’ training scenarios. In this situation, Echo or even Thunder Cloud would have already broken the silence with something to say, especially with a new pony in the group. Echo had even attempted to chat up Ice Blossom, even though that had ended in less than stellar results.

Quickcase opened his mouth to speak, only to have Bolt beat him to the punch. “So, what’s your story?” she asked, before turning to him.

“Pardon?”

“Your story. Or perhaps you pegasi in general. We on the ground treated you lot as little more than myth for who knows how long, and then y'all show up out of nowhere and defeat the largest raider army the Wasteland has ever seen. Your actions saved countless lives and stabilized the region as a result. Call me curious.”

“I see our actions haven’t gone unnoticed,” Quickcase said with a touch of pride.

Bolt Action raised an eyebrow but nodded. “It was hard to miss. Ponies are calling it the Battle for Solace and I’d say that very few haven’t heard of it at this point. A near impenetrable fortress loaded with pre-war technology and the worst raiders known to ponykind. Then, from the clouds as though from legend itself, come flying ponies in black armor, raining fire from the heavens. Honestly, until I saw you I didn’t really believe it,” Her eyes narrowed. “So, why are you here? I doubt it’s to suddenly become new ‘heroes’ of the Wasteland.”

Quickcase couldn’t help but notice the emphasis on the word ‘heroes’, and the disdain behind it. He put that thought aside along with the fact that she knew about the Solace Incident. It would have to be something to report later.

“There are those among us who believe the surface is of great value.”

“What could possibly be of value about it?” Bolt asked with skepticism in her voice.

Quickcase shrugged. “We have books and videos of what the world was like before the war. Some want to help return the world to that peaceful state instead of continuing our isolation. Besides” —he pulled out one of Bronco’s potatoes from his armor’s compartment— “after eating this, I’ve come to like the surface a whole lot better.”

The unicorn tried to suppress a snicker, especially considering how serious Quickcase had just sounded. “That’s the best thing you’ve ever tasted?”

The pegasus placed the potato back in its compartment and pulled out a ration bar. “This is our version of food, at least for those of us in military service.” He broke a piece off and offered it to her. “Go ahead and try a bite.”

She raised her hoof and shook her head. “I’ll take your word for it. So, I guess not all of you fly around in power armor then?”

“No. With my family, it was only my mother that served in the Enclave military. Life was fairly normal. Nopony had to struggle to survive, and even in the toughest of times we always pulled through.”

Now she looked confused. “If everything was peachy, why come down here? The wasteland is vile and corrupted, twisted beyond all recognition. Your ‘videos’ cannot compare to the horror of our reality,” She spat the words as if they were poisonous. “Definitely not a place for delusions of making the world better.”

Quickcase fell silent for several moments before continuing, “Because we have hope.”

Bolt Action stared at Quickcase for a long moment before rolling her eyes. “You sound just like the Paragon all over again.”

“I’ve been hearing that name a lot lately. Someone I should know about?” he asked.

“Oh, believe me. Make enough noise and she’ll come knocking sooner or later. Now watch your step. We’re getting close.”

Walking up a flight of stairs to the second level of the underground train line, the area they were in was empty, save for a single train car laid on its side, the back frame covered in centuries old burn marks, the remains of a pony skeleton hanging from the side. If Quickcase had to guess, that pony probably tried to crawl his way out after the train tipped over. He felt for whoever the pony was, wondering if he or she died in pain. It put him on edge, he knew the ground below was bad, but had never expected this.

“What about you?” he asked Bolt with slight unease, eager for a distraction.

The unicorn sighed. “Caravan girl. Family never stayed in one place when it came to trade. If a town needed fresh food or water, ponies called the ‘Canary Caravan’. Always delivered, if you could pay the fee. Things went well, ‘til the Raiders came.”

“Raiders? I thought that was the name of their army?”

Bolt shook her head. “Before they became a huge threat, they used to be disparate groups of bandits, highwaymen, and other ne'er do-wells. Somepony just had an idea to unify most of ‘em, and that’s how it all started.”

“So what happened?” Quickcase asked.

Bolt Action stopped in her tracks, the shadow of her hat hiding her eyes. “I was of age to try my first delivery. It went well, but, when I returned, my brother was the only pony to escape the onslaught. With no family, we were left to fend for ourselves. Survived ever since.”

There was a sadness in her voice for sure, he could tell, but also a hint of self-confidence. Quickcase could only imagine what it must be like, to lose everypony in your family. If this is the type of thing that awaits his people, then vigilance would be needed now more than ever.

Quickcase’s eyes caught sight of the door that that blocking their path, and allowed his new partner some silence, so she could regain herself.

Bolt Action’s horn glowed with a mint aura, and from her trenchcoat came an unusual looking pistol that Quickcase had never seen before. It was silver, with decorative engravings of two roses on its barrel. The ‘grip’ was also odd. It wasn’t a mouth grip by any means, in fact, he didn’t think it belonged to any ’pony’. The cowgirl walked over to the door and readied herself, motioning for Quickcase to do the same. The door was slowly pushed open and they entered carefully, doing their best to watch each other's back. Quickcase had to admit that he was both glad and impressed that she seemed to understand the basics of military tactics. The place they entered had been a waiting room where ponies could buy tickets, visit small shops for souvenirs, and old security bots would wander around to deter troublemakers. One of the old protecta-bots lay in a heap, long rusted and stripped of anything useful.

When they turned up no hostiles, Bolt Action twirled the pistol around, showing it off. She must’ve noticed Quickcase was starring. “Catch your fancy? I call him Buccaneer Rose. Took it off a griffin who decided to break his contract.”

Quickcase took that in, now understanding and recognizing the weapon from the history books and how the bird-like creatures used them in days past. “Must have been a hard fight.”

Bolt grinned. “One of the hardest fights in my life, but it was totally worth it for this and the caps it brought in.”

“Caps?” Quickcase asked in confusion. The look of shock on Bolt Action’s face was priceless, and Quickcase wished for a moment that his helmet was still working, if only to capture the moment.

“No… you can’t be… you’re dead serious ain’t you? How in day’s end are you lot planning to descend to this place if you don’t even know that?! Caps, you know…bottle caps! They’re what we use for currency down here.”

Quickcase gave her a deadpan look. ”Really? You use bottle caps?”

“Well, yeah! I mean, it's always been that way,” Bolt said, sounding just a little defensive.

Quick nodded his head. “We’ve got a long road ahead of us indeed.” He had to admit, it was resourceful, though how these dirt ponies managed to keep such an economy stable was baffling.

“What would a pony living a peaceful life know anyway?” She said, annoyance in her voice.

“Less than I’d like, which is all the more reason I will be relying on your support.”

Bolt looked at him with surprise, and she gave him a small smirk. “Maybe there is hope for you yet.” She looked around the area and pointed at another door. “I’ll watch your back.”

Readying his weapon, Quickcase walked up to the door, only to find it locked. Looking atop of its frame he noticed a sign that read ‘Harding Souvenirs. Best souvenirs and snacks for long trips!’.

She nodded. “I got this.” She put her gun away, pulled out a bobby pin and a screwdriver, and began working on the lock.

“That only works in movies. There is no way—” Quickcase began.

A click from the door interrupted him, with Bolt Action giving him a very smug look. “You were saying?”

“So, why are we breaking into a moons-old store? I’m sure anything of value will be long past its expiration date.”

“To survive the wasteland, you scavenge what you can. Medical supplies, ammo, food and water. Heck, stuff you don’t even need can be useful for trading when you get back to town.”

Quickcase looked down at her and then the shop. “But… it's been two hundred years. You really think there’s anything left?”

Bolt let out an exasperated sigh. “Are you going to question everything you encounter?”

“Well, it's just that it makes no sense!”

“Who knows. Maybe ponies in the past were really good at making stuff last. Maybe some lesser spirit of chaos randomly refills loot boxes for scavengers like ourselves, or maybe the equipment magically restocked itself.” Quickcase gave her a skeptical look and she shrugged. “Hey, I’m not going to question it. Best to pay attention to the pony that’s been doing this all her life.

The two once again slowly made their way inside and found the place was empty. Bolt let out a breath of relief. “I’ll never get used to the fact that the Paragon actually cleared this place. Most would have figured it was an impossible task. Still, never let your guard down, or you will wind up dead.”

‘A cheerful thought,’ Quickcase thought to himself.

“Now, let’s see what we can find.”

The two began searching through the small store, though Quickcase was still skeptical that anything would be found. “So,” he began as they looked between store shelves, “you mentioned you had a brother?”

The unicorn stopped in her tracks, “I’d rather not talk about it.”

Quickcase recognized that that was dangerous territory and didn’t bother to push further. He looked around the store but again, it was empty, “Nothing but empty cans and a toy car at the moment.”

“Grab them anyway. Your armor needs metal right? There’s more of it here.”

He opened his mouth to argue, but realized she had a valid point. Crushing the cans, he placed them in the reserve compartment for repairs.

“Don’t carry too much, it’ll-” she said, halting mid-speech. In a blur Bolt whipped out her pistol with her magic, pointing it at…a trash can?

“Come out where I can see you,” she demanded.

There was a few seconds pause before the spy emerged, “You wouldn’t shoot a filly would you?” A familiar voice spoke. Then, jumping from the trash can (and somehow completely clean) popped out a pink and white filly with the biggest grin she could muster.

Quickcase’s eyes widened. “Candy?! What are you doing here?”